Do Clean Screens Matter? Why Screen Washing Belongs With Window Cleaning
Updated: 5 hours ago
You can have perfectly clean glass and still look out at a dull, gray view. Very often the reason is the screen. It sits in front of the glass all year, catching whatever the wind carries, and almost nobody thinks to wash it.
Key points
A window screen works like a filter, and filters fill up.
Dirt on the mesh cuts daylight and washes onto the glass every time it rains.
Andersen, one of the largest window makers, suggests cleaning insect screens twice a year.
Screens are washed gently. A pressure washer can stretch or tear the mesh.
What a screen collects in a New England year
Think about what moves through the air here between March and November. Tree pollen is the dominant pollen in the Boston area from March to May, according to NBC Boston's pollen coverage. Grass and ragweed follow. Add road dust, cottonwood fluff, spider webs and the insects that come to a lit window at night.
The mesh traps a share of all of it. That is a good thing for the inside of your house. It is less good for the view, and it is the reason a window can look hazy an hour after the glass was cleaned.
What a dirty screen does to the window behind it
It blocks light. A clogged mesh visibly darkens a room.
It dirties the glass. Rain runs through the screen, picks up what is on it and dries on the pane as spots and streaks.
It can stain. Old aluminum screens shed oxidation that settles on the glass below as a chalky film. An often-quoted home repair column in the Daily Herald describes exactly this: gray deposits from oxidation particles off aluminum screens.
It restricts airflow when you open the window on a nice day.
If you have that chalky film, ordinary washing will not shift it. We cover the fix on our oxidation removal page.
How screens should be washed
The method matters, because the mesh is easy to damage. Andersen's own guide to cleaning window screens recommends a mild dish soap solution, a soft scrubber used with light pressure on both sides, and a gentle rinse. For a quick touch-up between washes it suggests a vacuum with a brush attachment.
That matches how Andy does it. Each screen is taken out, washed on both faces, rinsed and put back in the same opening. Frames and the pull tabs get wiped too, because that is where your fingers go.
Can you do it yourself?
Yes, and for ground-floor windows it is a pleasant Saturday job. Lay the screens flat or lean them against a wall, wash with soapy water and a soft brush, rinse with a gentle spray and let them dry before refitting. Three cautions:
Skip the pressure washer. It can stretch the mesh or pop it out of the frame.
Label the screens as you take them out. They look alike and rarely fit each other's openings.
Leave second-story screens that can only be removed from outside to someone with the right equipment. Ladder falls are a leading cause of serious injury; the CDC reports that 43% of fatal falls over a decade involved a ladder.
When to replace a screen
Cleaning will not fix torn mesh, a bent frame or corners that have come apart. Screens with holes also stop doing their one job, which is keeping insects out. Most hardware stores can re-screen a frame inexpensively, and it is worth doing before the next cleaning so you are not paying to wash a screen you are about to throw away.
Common questions
How often should screens be cleaned?
Twice a year suits most homes, which is also Andersen's recommendation. In practice that means having them done with your spring and fall window cleaning.
Do you remove the screens to clean the windows?
Yes. Cleaning glass through a screen does not work. Screens come out, get washed and go back.
Will clean screens help my allergies?
We are window cleaners, not doctors, so we will not make a health claim. What we can say is that a washed screen is no longer holding a season's worth of pollen and dust in front of an open window.
Have them done together
Screen washing is part of our skylight, screen and mirror cleaning service and is easiest to add to a regular residential window cleaning. If you would like a price, request a free estimate or call 508-740-2886.
Comments